Vegan Cheese, Why Buy It?

Four years ago when I was a raw vegan I discovered an addictive condiment with very few ingredients. It was Parma. A raw, vegan parmesan cheese substitute. Very expensive, at about $7.99 per container, I looked at the ingredients and decided to make my own. So simple, so much more cost effective. The ingredients are Paleo-friendly and I make the original version, not the spicier variety. 

"Parmesan" "Cheese"

-3 oz raw organic Walnuts

-1 1/2-2 TBSP  nutritional, or brewers yeast flakes ( the Parma uses Red Star)

-ground pepper

-Celtic sea salt

In a food processor combine all ingredients and chop/grind until it looks like this.


I'm going to try to make this with black walnuts and see how it turns out.

The Better Roasted Seaweed Option

Just as I have been eating shirataki noodles since before it became a trend. Honestly The Hungry Girl thinks she is fucking Christopher Columbus when it comes to low-cal food, kind of annoying. Also none of her recipes qualify for the food category since she regularly bakes with diet soda.  I have also been eating roasted Nori packets for awhile. When I first started eating them the only place you could buy them was an Asian supermarket and the unfortunate thing about the kind you find in an Asian supermarket is they tend to be made with soy oil or corn oil. Gross.

A year ago I discovered that they sell packages of roasted seaweed at Trader Joe's, but after mulling over the ingredients they too have a bad ingredient. Canola oil, which to me is as disgusting as corn or soy oil. I only eat the ones from Trader Joe's once in a while, like once a month or if I go on vacation. I found an alternative brand, SeaSnax that is so much healthier and tastes so much better. I discovered them at the Sweets and Snacks Expo in Chicago last May.  They are by far the best brand I have ever tasted and they use olive oil. At the show they gave me a deal and I was able to buy two cases of their snack packs in Onion and Classic and then a case of their packages of big sheets. This product is far superior to any other brand I have ever tried. They were so nice they also gave me a lot of packs for free, some were Chipotle, etc. Great company and a great product.

Next best thing would be Nori roasted in lard, lol.

I Had a Dream About A Purple Sweet Potato

I am obsessed with Okinawa Purple Sweet Potatoes and I have been ever since I discovered them two years ago. All of their starchy goodness makes me have oralgasms (orgasms of the salivary glands). If I could I would be buried with cooked purple sweet potatoes in a bath tub and eat my out. Not only are they visually exquisite, but so much sweeter than any other potato.

I use the these potatoes for everything, I make muffins, I make popsicles, and I eat them as they are. Here are some of my favorite recipes I have come up with using purple sweet potatoes. I actually have never made hash browns or french fries or mashed potatoes out of them because that to me is boring.

Purple Sweet Potato Protein Muffins

-40 g cooked purple sweet potatoes, mashed

-3 TBSP coconut milk

-1 whole egg ( I use jumbos, they are more satisfying)

-7g/1 TBSP coconut flour

-5 g protein powder (I use Lifetime's Basics with Greens)

-1/4 tsp non-aluminum baking powder

optional: vanilla or maple extract

Makes 3 small muffins. Preheat oven to 375 F. Mix all ingredients in a bowl and then pour into a muffin pan that is lined with muffin cups. Bake until slightly brown.

Purple Sweet Potato Protein FuckMe-sicles

-30 g cooked purple sweet potato, mashed

-1/3 c coconut milk

-10 g Lifetime's Basics Plant Protein With Greens

-10 g Chocolate egg white Protein

-1 tsp cocoa powder

Mix all ingredients and put into freezer pop molds. Freeze for at least 24 hours. I like to drop things in right before putting the stick in, such as dark chocolate, or these or this. So yummy. Sometimes I even put in my own "pumpkin pie" filling muffins

Purple Sweet Potato Bagels

-40g purple sweet potato, mashed

-28g coconut flour

-3g guar gum

-1 egg white

-1/2 tsp non-aluminum baking powder

Makes 2 small bagels. Preheat oven to 400 F and bring some water to a boil in a pot. Mix all ingredients, add water as needed to make a dough. Separate into two even portions, roll into balls, flatten and poke a hole in the center. Boil for 35 sec per side in water and then place on a greased baking sheet and slide into the oven. Bake until slightly browned.

Per bagel: 99 calories, 4.7g protein, 15.3g carbs, 2.1g fat, 6.6 g fiber, 2.7g sugar

Orgastronomica

Orgastronomica=Organic+Gastronomy

My Meal, A Color Wheel

Orgastronomica is about the devotion to eating. The obsession that is food, there is no unhealthy obsession regarding food. I believe that all senses should be overloaded with each bite and every ingredient needs to be as close to nature as possible. I work in the health food industry so I am surrounded by food all day, almost everyday. I get to try a lot of different kinds of food at various trade shows, so why not write about food.

 
I am a person that eats pistachio butter with still bleeding bison flank steak, curry roasted cauliflower with chocolate covered brazil nuts and punjab eggplant with pumpkin pie. I need to eat a rainbow, not in the form of skittles at every meal, every day. And since I eat six times a day, that is a lot of color and a lot of roughage. Why be bland when you can be vibrant and extraordinary!